Centennial :: U of M Centennial News :: University of Memphis · The college fad of “streaking” hits campus. 1975— Innovative University College established at MSU. Enrollment

Centennial :: U of M Centennial News :: University of Memphis

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U of M Centennial News Centennial StoryThe makings of a university1912 sees the founding of West Tennessee State Normal School. More >

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Tigers Around Town.One HundredStrong. Learn More >

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Presidential Portrait Gallery

From Seymour Mynders to Dr. Shirley Raines, view the portraits of a century of University of Memphis presidents.

To learn more about the U of M's eleven presidents, see A gallery of presidents, from past to present.

Centennial Events

Text Only | Print | Got a Question? Ask TOM | Contact Us | Memphis, TN 38152 | 901/678-2000 | Copyright 2015 University of Memphis | Important Notice | Last Updated: 5/15/15

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Centennial :: U of M Centennial News :: University of Memphis

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U of M Centennial News Centennial StoryThat perfect seasonNeither rain nor sleet nor snow--not even ankle-deep mud--would keep Douglas Mayo and his 1938 teammates from recording the only perfect season in U of M football history. More >





Presidential Portrait Gallery

From Seymour Mynders to Dr. Shirley Raines, view the portraits of a century of University of Memphis presidents.

To learn more about the U of M's eleven presidents, see A gallery of presidents, from past to present.

Centennial Events



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Gallery of University of Memphis Presidents

http://web0.memphis.edu/centennial/gallery/[10/2/2015 2:53:46 PM]

Seymour A. Mynders1912-1913

John Willard Brister1913-1918, 1924-1939

Andrew A. Kincannon1918-1924

Richard C. Jones

1939-1943Dr. Jennings Bryan Sanders

1943-1946Dr. J. Millard "Jack" Smith

1946-1960Dr. Cecil C. Humphreys

1960-1972

Dr. Billy Mac Jones

1973-1980Dr. Thomas G. Carpenter

1980-1991Dr. V. Lane Rawlins

1991-2000Dr. Shirley C. Raines

2001-present

Gallery of University of Memphis Presidents

http://web0.memphis.edu/centennial/gallery/[10/2/2015 2:53:46 PM]

Last Updated: 5/15/15

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Centennial :: Centennial Timeline :: University of Memphis

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Browse by decade:

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1920s

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Explore the U of M through the last century:

1910s

1909—Memphis and Shelby County Normal School Committee on Oct. 8, submits its “statement of the claims… for the West Tennessee State Normal School” based on “…accessibility, centralness of position, healthfulness of location, cheapness of living, opportunities for arranging for suitable practice and observation schools, and the value and usefulness of offers of donations of grounds, buildings, money, etc.” The General Education Law of 1909 creates the 2-year WTSNC.

1912—West Tennessee State Normal School, a state school for the training of teachers—tuition free and board at cost

—begins its first session of Sept. 10 with Seymour A. Mynders, former public schools supervisor, as president, three buildings on 80 acres (Administration, Mynders Hall and the president’s residence) and 300 students. WTSNS plays first football game on Oct. 15 against MUS. Students select school colors as blue and gray.

1913—John Willard Brister, former state superintendent of education, named second president.

1914—First student publication is a monthly journal The Columns. School library is two rooms in the Administration Building.

1916—DeSoto yearbook begins publication.

1918—Andrew A. Kincannon, former chancellor of the University of Mississippi, named third president.

1919—WTNS becomes a three-year college.

1920s

1923—First dining hall is built and used until 1958. During each football game this season, the pre-game prayer ended with “… everyman fights like a tiger” and a nickname was born.

1924—J.W. Brister reappointed president.

1925—WTNS becomes a four-year State Teachers College.

1927—First student education loans made.

1928—First library (later named Brister Library) and first gymnasium (Memorial Gymnasium) built.

1929—Name changed to West Tennessee State Teachers College.

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1930s

1930—Enrollment reaches 672. Construction begins on Manning Hall.

1931—Student newspaper The Tiger Rag established.

1932—The Depression hits hard at the College: budget cut, future uncertain. Enrollment reaches 840.

1933—Depression era (1933–37) sees annual budgets of only $56,000.

1938—State Teachers College football team goes undefeated and untied. Enrollment is 775.

1939—Richard C. Jones, former college dean, appointed fourth president.

1940s

1940—Enrollment at 1,096.

1941—Now known as Memphis State College.

1943—Jennings B. Sanders, former UT History Department chair, named fifth president. World War II enlistments cause enrollment to drop to 216.

1944—Department of English begins offering French, Latin, and Spanish classes.

1946—J. Millard “Jack” Smith, an alumnus and former dean of MSC, named sixth president; enrollment hits 1,505 as World War II veterans return to campus, budgets begin rise as veterans return to MSC.

1947—MSC boasts its first Miss America, Barbara Jo Walker. Enrollment stands at 1,970.

1948—Enrollment 2,313.

1949—Enrollment 2,368. Master’s degree in education offered.

1950s

1950—Gov. Gordon Browning endorses proposal for MSC to become University of Tennessee at Memphis - Enrollment 2,479. English and Mathematical Sciences departments offers first graduate classes.

1951—Enrollment 2,324. First B.A. degrees established. The Field House, student center and cafeteria are under construction. Air Force ROTC program began.

1952—Greater Memphis State, Inc. founded and leads effort for university status.

1953—Undergraduate programs reorganized into three schools: Arts & Sciences, Education, and Business. Enrollment at 2,000.

1955—Memphis State Press established to publish scholarly publications. Student golfer Hillman Robbins wins National Intercollegiate Golf Championship.

1956—Evening Division begins to attract adult and part-time students.

1957—MSC becomes Memphis State University. MSU is defeated by Bradley University 84-83 for National Invitation Tournament championship at Madison Square Garden. Game is broadcast on national television. State Legislature approves name change to Memphis State University. Professor R.W. Johnson donates $100,000 for a social science building (now Johnson Hall). MSU’s winningest football coach, Billy J. “Spook” Murphy, hired.

1959—Memphis State admits its first black students and enrollment hits 4,845.



Football team upsets Florida State on Homecoming.

1960s

1960—Dr. Cecil C. Humphreys becomes MSU’s seventh president, presides over a 12-year period of unprecedented growth. Enrollment hits 5,171. Goodwyn Institute Lecture Series moves from downtown Memphis office building to MSU. First M.S. degree in chemistry awarded.

1961—Enrollment reaches 6,130. State deeds 175-acre Chucalissa Park and Museum to MSU.

1962—50th anniversary celebrated. Law school established at MSU by taking over two proprietary law schools; Ph.D.

programs offered. MSU defeats foe Mississippi State for first victory over an SEC team. Southern Journal of Philosophy founded.

1963—Football team, coached by Billy “Spook” Murphy goes 9-0-1. Enrollment now 8,697. Bureau of Business and Economic Research begun to provide information for Memphis and the Mid-South.

1964—Herff College of Engineering and Department of Nursing established at MSU. Enrollment leaps 26 % to 10,975. Mississippi Valley Collection of historical documents set up at MSU Library. First basketball game played in the Mid-South Coliseum.

1965—MSU Foundation established to provide private support for the University. First football game played at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium. Enrollment increases to 13,561. Division of Research and Services oversees $800,000 in research grants.

1966—First annual fund drive conducted. Doctoral programs begin in education and psychology. Enrollment 14,541. Distinguished Teaching Award initiated to recognize outstanding classroom teaching. Doctoral programs in chemistry, economics and history are approved by State. J.M. Smith Chemistry building opens.

1967—The 129-acre Kennedy Veterans Hospital property (now South Campus) given to MSU by the General Services Administration in Washington on Oct. 5. Enrollment is 15,274. Juris Doctor degrees in law awarded to 49 students. Memphis Speech and Hearing Center becomes part of the University. Meeman Forest Farm, a 623-acre property in northwest Shelby County, given to MSU by the Edward J. Meeman Foundation as well as $200,000 toward construction of a journalism building. Patterson Hall occupied on site of former President’s residence. Office of Oral History Research established.

1968—First Ph.D. awarded; Library Tower and University Center dedicated. Enrollment 16,637 with 79 Tennessee counties, 42 states and 36 foreign countries represented. 109 black students stage a sit-in in the President’s office demanding 50 new black faculty, $1,800 for speech on campus by suspended congressman Adam Clayton Powell (NY) and a reduction of student fees. Dr. Helen Nunn hired as first black faculty member. Construction of three engineering buildings on Central Ave. at a cost of $6.5 million begins. Tennessee Higher Education Commission recommends developing MSU into a comprehensive doctoral-level institution similar to UT-Knoxville. Office of Research Administration, opened in 1966, received over $3 million in its first three years of operation. Martin Luther King assassinated in Memphis.

1969—Enrollment 17,467. Five additional building projects get underway—psychology, business administration, journalism and South Campus’ athletic complex and married student housing. Arnold Air Society and Angel Flight of the MSU Air Force ROTC were both voted best in the country, the first time one institution had won both honors.

1970s

1970—MSU is the first university to stage the rock musical Hair amid a vast amount of both positive and negative publicity (nude scene was omitted). Law students published the first issue of the MSU Law Review. Enrollment now 18,754. The Phoenix, a student literary



magazine (now called The Pinch), established. Psychology building occupied.

1971—Enrollment hits 20,043. Institute of Criminal Justice started—the forerunner of the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice. Student newspaper The Tiger Rag becomes The Helmsman. Football team plays in Pasadena

Bowl in California.

1972—Dr. Cecil C. Humphreys named 1st chancellor of the newly established State University and Community College System of Tennessee (Tennessee Board of Regents). Ph.D. in mathematics and M.F.A. in theatre begun. Life Science building opened. The Lady Tigers basketball team returns to competition for the first time since women’s athletic programs were abolished in 1937.

1973—MSU makes its first trip to the NCAA basketball finals, losing to the Bill Walton-led UCLA Bruins; Dr. Billy M. Jones becomes eighth MSU president, succeeding Acting President Dr. John Richardson. Dr. Paul Erdos, Wolf Prize recipient, becomes an adjunct professor and long-time friend of the mathematics department bringing international recognition to MSU.

1974—The college fad of “streaking” hits campus.

1975—Innovative University College established at MSU. Enrollment reaches all-time high of 22,236. Annual operating budget surpasses $43 million.

1976—Female athletes were awarded athletic scholarships for the first time.

1977—3,036 degrees awarded and College of Communication and Fine Arts established at MSU. Student Claire Ford selected Miss Black America. The Earthquake Information Center (now Center for Earthquake Research and Information) established by Tennessee Legislature.

1978—Memphis State Press publishes 13 books. Annual Fund contributions total over $750,000. Avron and Robert Fogelman pledge $2.5 million to enrich the College of Business programs. Vice President George H.W. Bush visits the campus. Nursing Department transfers its associate degree program to Shelby State Community College and offers its first baccalaureate degree. First doctor of business administration degree awarded.

1979—National History Day contest for area junior and senior high students established.

1980s

1980—Dr. Thomas Carpenter becomes MSU’s ninth president, makes program quality, not growth, top goal. High Water Records established as a record label and a division of the University.

1981—The University Art Museum and Communication and Fine Arts building opens.

1982—MSU celebrates its golden anniversary as well as its silver anniversary as a university. Journalism department receives full accreditation by the American Council for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication. Center

for Research on Women established with a grant from the Ford Foundation.

1983—Film makers in Theatre and Communication Arts produced an adaptation of Peter Taylor’s The Old Forest for PBS. With All-American Keith Lee, the basketball Tigers make it to the NCAA “Sweet Sixteen” and finish with a 23-8 record.

1984—The Centers and Chairs for Excellence programs are instituted and MSU has first chair. Center for Electron Microscopy created. Cognitive science seminar becomes the forerunner of the Institute for Intelligent Systems (now an Accomplished Center of Excellence). Information Center WATS line handles some 700 telephone calls daily while 100 visitors check in at the center.

1985—MSU signs exchange agreement with Huazhong Normal University of China.



Brothers Bert and David Bornblum donate $1 million to establish a Judaic Studies program. Men’s basketball, with a 31-4 record, advance to the NCAA’s Final Four.

1986—100% of all eligible academic programs are accredited. School of Accountancy established and Fogelman Executive Conference Center opened.

1987—MSU celebrates its 75th anniversary as well as 30 years as a university. Kellye Cash become MSU’s second Miss America. Office of Development raises $4.3 million from 6,200 donors. Center for Academic Athletic Services created Ph.D. program in engineering approved. Marcus W. Orr Center for the Humanities founded.

1988—Dorothy K. Hohenberg Chair of Excellence in Art History approved.

1989—MSU now has five Centers of Excellence an 18 Chairs of Excellence and Robert Wang Center for International Business dedicated. The Center for Research Initiatives and Strategies for the Communicatively Impaired (CRISCI) designated as an Accomplished Center of Excellence by the State of Tennessee. Board of Visitors, advisors to the president, established. Biomedical Engineering program begun.

1990s

1990—Department of Nursing becomes the William A. and Ruth F. Loewenberg School of Nursing. Campus radio station WUMR increases power from 250 watts to 25,000 watts. Doctoral programs in geophysics and philosophy approved by TBR.

1991—V. Lane Rawlins named tenth president. The Tigers play their first basketball game in the Pyramid. University’s first parking garage opens on Deloach St. Bengal tiger mascot TOM II born.

1993—First Board of Visitors’ Eminent Faculty Award given. Department of Audiology and Speech Pathology renamed as School of Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology. The U of M goes online with its first website, one of the first college/university sites in the nation. Our Egyptian Institute site was one of the first museum Web sites as well.

1994—MSU becomes The University of Memphis on July 1. State-of-the-art Ned R. McWherter Library opens.

1996—First completely online accredited master’s degree in journalism anywhere

in the world launched. U Of M defeats 6th ranked UT 21-17. ESPN selects Kevin Cobb’s 95-yard kickoff return as college football play of the year. The Benjamin L. Hooks Institute for Social Change is established.

1997—The Teen Appeal, a national model newspaper in conjunction with The Commercial Appeal, to help foster high school journalism begun. Ph.D. program in communication started.

1998—The audiology program and the speech-language pathology program ranked

8th and 10th respectively by U.S. News and World Report. Faculty and staff members assist new students move into their dorms during first annual “Warm Welcome Move-In.”

1999—The Carrier Center, a state-of-the-art teaching location provided by the Carrier Corp., opens in Collierville. Lady Tiger Tamika Whitmore finishes her college basketball career as the nation’s leading scorer and heads to the WNBA. Feinstone Chair of Excellence in functional genomics established.

2000s

2000—Music faculty member Dr. Lily Afshar wins the national Orville H. Gibson Award for best female classical guitarist. Benefactors Rudi and Honey Scheidt endow the music department and the name is changed to the Rudi E. Scheidt School of Music. Doctor of Audiology (Au.D.) degree approved by TBR. The prestigious academic journal Newspaper Research Journal returns to our campus



where it originated. M.S. degree in electronic commerce begun.

2001—Dr. Shirley C. Raines named 11th president. Plough Chair of Excellence in Audiology and Speech-Language

Pathology established as the 25th chair on campus.

2002—90th year since our founding and 45th year as a university. The U of M captured its first post-season title in any sport as the Tigers won the NIT championship in Madison Square Garden. The Kemmons Wilson School of Hospitality and Resort Management, a $15 million facility given by the founder of Holiday Inns, opens. 12-year-old U of M junior Alex Brueggeman becomes the youngest student ever to receive the prestigious Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship. Loewenberg School of Nursing, with a 99 percent passage rate on state licensure exams, is reaccredited through 2010. The first Regents Online Degree Program students graduate. The U of M buys the Millington satellite campus

2003—FedEx Technology Institute opens. The University opens the Heritage Room, which showcases photos and memorabilia from the University’s past.

2005—“Coming Home,” a U of M art exhibit that explores evangelism and the South through the eyes of self-taught artists, opens in New York City. A U of M team unearths a new tomb in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings.

2006—The University acquires its first supercomputers. The first softball team is fielded.

2007—Former U of M President Billy Mac Jones passes away. The Center for Sustainable Design breaks ground on the TERRA House, one of the first buildings in the region to conform to the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED guidelines for homes.

2008—Bill J. Murphy, long-time University of Memphis football coach and athletic director, passes away at age 87. The University dedicates its new state-of-the-art data center. Helen Hardin donates $2 million to the University’s honors program, and the program is renamed to the Helen Hardin Honors Program.

2009—The School of Public Health established. Construction started on the new University Center. The Confucius Institute founded at the U of M.

2010—Tiger Lane, a new entrance to the Liberty Bowl Stadium, opens in time for the U of M’s first football game of the season. Dr. Benjamin L. Hooks, civil rights leader and Distinguished Adjunct Faculty Member in the Department of Political Science and History at the U of M, passes away. The University opens its new 169,000 square-foot University Center as well as the new Law School facility, located downtown in the old U.S. Post Office building. The University has its highest enrollment ever: 22,412 students. The “New West” living/learning residence opens. Dr. Santosh Kumar is named one of Popular Science’s “Brilliant 10” researchers.

2011—Former U of M basketball star and coach Larry Finch passes away at age 60. The School of Audiology and Speech Language Pathology changes its name to School of Communication Sciences and Disorders. Loewenberg School of Nursing has a 100 percent passage rate on licensure exams.



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Centennial :: Looking Ahead :: University of Memphis

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Looking Ahead Tigers Around Town.One HundredStrong. Learn More >



The University of Memphis is proud of the achievements it has made over the past one hundred years, and is equally excited about its prospects for the future. Watch as Dr. Shirley Raines, President of the University of Memphis, outlines the direction in which she plans to lead the University as it enters a new century.

Students of the Future

Through growing enrollment and graduation rates as well as engaged scholarship, the University of Memphis strives to serve the community and to make an impact on it for the better. Through its emerging leadership programs and community engagement projects, it strives to provide opportunities for its students to do so as well.

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Alternative Spring Break (video)IFTI Train Noise Study (video)Philisophical Horizons Program (video)Vance Avenue Collaborative Project (video)

Student Leadership

Research of the Future

Over the past decade, the University of Memphis has made research a priority, and as a result has doubled the research dollars it receives. University researchers, both in the hard sciences and the social sciences, are making breakthroughs that will help not only members of the local community but also the nation and the world.

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Iconic Buildings

From an ultramodern, state-of-the-art technology building that inspires innovation in those who enter, to an historic law school building that has been a fixture on the Memphis waterfront for over a century, to a working hotel that gives weary travelers a place to stay as well as students an environment for gaining valuable job skills, the University of Memphis prides itself in its iconic buildings that not only serve to house campus needs such as research and instruction, but also act as community resources.

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Kemmons Wilson School of Hospitality and Resort ManagementFedEx Institute of TechnologyCecil C. Humphreys School of Law



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Centennial :: The Makings of a University :: University of Memphis

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The Makings of a University Centennial StoryThe makings of a university1912 sees the founding of West Tennessee State Normal School. More >





Under the General Education Bill of 1909, the State of Tennessee established normal schools to train teachers in each of the state’s three grand divisions. The purpose of these schools was to establish standards or norms for teaching. At the time, the majority of teachers held third-grade certificates, indicating that they not only lacked college training but also high school training. The average teacher salary was $130 per year and the school term lasted 93 days.

The State Board of Education chose a site for the West Tennessee Normal School six miles from downtown Memphis on Midland and Southern avenues adjacent to the Southern Railway. In addition to the convenience of railway transportation, the City of Memphis agreed to make immediate water and sewage connections and extend the Buntyn street-car line. Construction of the West Tennessee State Normal School began in June of 1911.

Faculty, staff and students gather on the steps of the Administration Building in the early days of the University.

Seymour Mynders was chosen by the State Board of Education as president of the new normal school. While supervising the building of the school, Mynders selected the school faculty, prepared the curriculum and wrote the school bulletin. Mynders hired 17 faculty members to teach the “Normal Course,” a two-year course of study that prepared teachers for the elementary public schools. Upon completion of the course, graduates received a diploma, which served as a life certificate of qualification to teach all grade levels in any public school in Tennessee. The curriculum was divided into nine departments: English, education, history, mathematics, science, language, manual training, agriculture and the training school.

The law establishing the school provided that it would be open to white residents of Tennessee who were a minimum of 16 years of age and had completed at least the elementary school course prescribed for the public schools of the state. Applicants had to present a certificate of good moral character from a responsible person, and furnish evidence of being strong physically and free from chronic defects that would prevent satisfactory work as a student.

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Centennial :: The Makings of a University :: University of Memphis

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The school was tuition-free to all Tennessee students. The only monies collected were a $2 registration fee for each term and $1 for summer terms. Non-Tennessee residents were charged a tuition of $12 per term and the regular $2 registration fee.

The West Tennessee State Normal School officially opened on Sept. 10, 1912, at a cost of $450,000. The initial buildings on the 81-acre campus, nestled among magnificent oak trees and open fields, were the Administration/Academic Building and Mynders Hall. The three-story Administration/Academic Building had more than 50 rooms dedicated to classrooms, offices, laboratories and an auditorium. Mynders Hall — the girls’ dormitory — had 110 bedrooms, a parlor, kitchen, dining room, infirmary and quarters for the matron. Male students lived off campus in Prescott Flats, a two-story apartment building near the school; male athletes were housed in rooms set aside in the Administration Building.

To accommodate the school, Southern Railroad established Normal Station, a Craftsman-style waiting station that served the rail and streetcar lines. Upon arrival at the school, students could have their baggage carried by mule wagons to the dormitory. In many instances, male students carried the baggage on pushcarts or rolling bed frames. Male students frequently carried the women’s bags up to their floors, under the watchful eye of chaperones, as otherwise men were not allowed in women’s dormitories. For a five-cent fee, students could ride the streetcar to downtown, a trip that lasted approximately 40 minutes.

Approximately 200 students enrolled for the first semester of classes.

— by Janann Sherman,

with special thanks to Cynthia Sadler and Rachel South



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Centennial :: Calendar of Events :: University of Memphis

http://web0.memphis.edu/centennial/events.php[10/2/2015 2:53:58 PM]

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Calendar of Events Centennial StoryLegend of the fallA single play for Tiger football in 1963 not only looked to doom the season, it did something greater: it gave birth to a legend. More >







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Centennial :: A gallery of presidents, from past to present :: University of Memphis

http://web0.memphis.edu/centennial/presidents.htm[10/2/2015 2:54:01 PM]

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Seymour A. Mynders

John Willard Brister

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A gallery of presidents, from past to present Centennial StoryThese times they are a-changin'From the Memphis State Eight to Vietnam War-era demonstrations, U of M students have a history of making their voices be heard. More >





Seymour A. Mynders(1912-1913)

Seymour A. Mynders helped create the school that was to one day become the University of Memphis. The Knoxville native graduated from the University of Tennessee in 1880 and dedicated his life to education. Sporting the hot wool suits and high-collared shirts of the time, Mynders and his successor, John Willard Brister, trekked the state from county to county – by wagon and train – in a relentless pursuit of a school to better educate teachers. They met with success in 1909 when the Tennessee General Assembly passed the General Education Bill proposing a Normal School for each of the state’s three grand divisions.

But Mynders’ hard work had only begun. He negotiated the first construction contracts for the West Tennessee State Normal School, recruited the faculty and developed the curriculum. In 1912 the school opened to 200 young women and men hoping to become teachers. Sadly, the job took its toll. Mynders died in 1913 of a heart ailment that many attributed to the grueling work he did to launch West Tennessee State Normal School.

Did you know?• Students could earn extra money by working in the dormitories, farm or dining hall. A few defrayed their expenses by fetching the mail or ringing a gong to signal change of classes.

• The football team had several nicknames, including Blue and Gray Warriors, Normals and Normalites. For the first few seasons they played high school teams.

John Willard Brister(1913-1918, 1924-1939)

An 1893 graduate of Peabody College, John Willard Brister served as a college professor until 1911 when he was named Tennessee superintendent of education. His tenure as president of WTSNS that began in 1913 was a rocky one. The Latin scholar left the office after five years in 1918, but was destined to return.

As young Americans were fighting in the trenches of France during World War I, Brister joined the war effort as education secretary for the YMCA. When the war ended, he was named a state high school inspector, a position he held until 1924, when he once again joined the Normal School. His tenure was to see a major change

just a year later. In 1925 the school was upgraded to a four-year, degree-granting institution and West Tennessee State Teachers College was born.

Did you know?• Original plans for the Normal School did not include a library.Brister solicited private donations to buy 4,000 books andinstalled his wife as librarian.

• Brister proposed a system to cool the auditorium in theAdministration Building by forcing air across pipesfilled with cool 60-degree water from the college’s welland into the auditorium. The cooling project became acasualty of the national economic

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Andrew A. Kincannon

Richard C. Jones

Dr. Jennings B. Sanders

crash of October 1929.

Andrew A. Kincannon(1918-1924)

Andrew A. Kincannon occupied the president’s office between John Willard Brister’s two terms. A native Mississippian, Kincannon held a master’s degree from National Normal University in Lebanon, Ohio, and an honorary doctorate from the University of Arkansas. A veteran college administrator, he served as chancellor of the University of Mississippi before being named to replace Brister.

Did you know?• Kincannon was determined that all students learn to swim. A “pool” was constructed by building an earthen dam over a gully located east of the Administration Building. It was lined with sand and filled with clean Artesian water. The pool was used for

swimming lessons and recreation for three summers until the dam gave way.

• 150 students became ill during the influenza epidemic of 1918. The school was quarantined for a time, but all the students recovered.

Richard C. Jones(1939-1943)

Richard C. Jones had an uncanny knack for being in the right place at the right time, it seemed to many. After earning an MS from Peabody College in 1932, he became a public school teacher, superintendent and administrator. In the late 1930s, Jones was appointed principal of the Campus Training School at WTSTC – although he never held the post. Before he could take the helm, the job of dean of the college became vacant and Jones was named to fill the post. Brister soon became ill and Jones stepped in as acting president. When Brister died in 1939, Jones was tapped to fill the presidency. He held the job until 1943, when he went to work for the Texas prison system. During Jones’ tenure, the

school’s name was changed to Memphis State College.

Did you know?• The entire 1942 football team joined the Marine Corps Reserves during halftime of a game in 1942, leading to a hiatus in athletics that lasted until 1947.

• The college was home to the Civilian Pilot Training Program from 1939-44. Three female students were among the 20 students completing flight training during the 1941-42 school year.

Dr. Jennings Bryan Sanders(1943-1946)

Dr. Jennings B. Sanders is regarded as the University’s first true scholar-president. He was recognized for making significant contributions to the historical literature of the Colonial period. Sanders graduated from Franklin College in 1923 and earned his doctorate five years later from the University of Chicago. Before joining Memphis State College, he was a professor and chair of the University of Tennessee Department of History from 1935-42. Sanders resigned as president in 1946 to devote his time to scholarly writing.

Did you know?• Sanders held conferences with the Army and Navy to restore

working relationships (which had been strained during World War II), resulting in several courses in aerial science launched in the summer of 1944.

• Sanders made it his chief goal to restore the college to full SACS accreditation. He was successful in earning reinstatement in 1946 and resigned just three months later.

J. Millard “Jack” Smith(1946-1960)

Jack Smith was the first alumnus to lead the University. He graduated from Memphis State with a BS in 1929 and went on to Peabody College for his MA in 1930. Smith spent 15 years as a teacher and principal in the public school system. Before assuming the presidency, he was director of the Training School and dean of Memphis State College. Under Smith, the college achieved full



Jack Smith

Dr. Cecil C. Humphreys

Dr. Billy Mac Jones

university status in 1957. He led the school through one of its watershed moments, admitting its first African-American students in 1959.

Did you know?• The Air Force ROTC rifle team compiled a record of 26 wins and no losses in 1951, tying for 15th among AFROTC units nationally.

• Elvis Presley was pictured signing a “We Want University Status for Memphis State” postcard to be sent to the governor.

Dr. Cecil C. Humphreys

(1960-1972)

Dr. Cecil C. Humphreys earned his master’s from the University of Tennessee in 1938 and his doctorate from New York University in 1957. As president, he saw student enrollment climb above 20,000 as post-World War II baby boomers flooded the nation’s campuses.

Plagued by growing pains, MSU grew rapidly. New buildings popped up everywhere as students and dollars poured into the growing school. Academic achievements were also on the rise: MSU awarded its first doctorate and established a law school. The student pranks of a simpler time mirrored the turbulent mood in the country, giving way to angry student protests over the Vietnam War, civil rights and other issues. The Department of Theatre and

Dance staged the controversial musical Hair.

Did you know?• Humphreys first joined the University in 1937 as a teacher and assistant football coach, and was named athletic director in 1946.

• He served with the FBI during World War II.

• The University fielded its first costumed mascot, Pouncer, in 1960.

Dr. Billy Mac Jones(1973-1980)

Dr. Billy Mac Jones graduated from Vanderbilt University in 1950 and earned master’s degrees in both history and education from George Peabody College of Vanderbilt University. At Texas Tech University, he was a history instructor from 1961-63 and received a PhD in history and political science. The former star football player was a professor and department chair in history specializing in the American Southwest. He was serving as president of Southwest Texas State University, San Marcos, when he was chosen as the University’s eighth president. Under Jones’ direction, the University continued to mature despite shrinking state support. Initiatives by Jones led to the development of two new colleges –

the innovative University College, which offered interdisciplinary degree programs, and the College of Communication and Fine Arts.

Did you know?• The nationwide fad of streaking hit the campus in 1974.

• In 1976, Smokey Robertson, a part-German Shepherd, part-Labrador mix, was an official candidate for Homecoming queen. Although Smokey received more votes than any human candidate, many were tossed out because they didn’t include Smokey’s last name.

• The first scholarships were offered to female athletes in 1976.

Dr. Thomas G. Carpenter(1980-1991)

Dr. Thomas G. Carpenter graduated from then-Memphis State in 1949 and received his master’s degree in economics from Baylor University in 1950 and his PhD from the University of Florida in



Dr. Thomas G. Carpenter

Dr. V. Lane Rawlins

Dr. Shirley C. Raines

1963. The Atlanta native was in his 11th year as president of the University of North Florida at the time of his selection as Memphis’ president.

Carpenter understood the urban university he led, with 80 percent of students holding full- or part-time jobs. He had worked 40 hours a week at an auto parts warehouse while attending Memphis State. Carpenter placed emphasis on quality teaching, tougher admissions policies, and faculty research and scholarship aimed at regional

and national recognition. While president, he received the Alumnus of the Year award from the Fogelman College of Business & Economics.

Did you know?• Carpenter established six Centers of Excellence.

• He wrote, “Our goal is to make the University one of the top research centers by the year 2000, its 88th year.”

Dr. V. Lane Rawlins(1991-2000)

Dr. V. Lane Rawlins received a bachelor’s degree from Brigham Young University and a PhD in economics from the University of California, Berkeley. The Idaho native made higher education his life’s work. Before coming to Memphis, he served as vice chancellor for academic affairs for the University of Alabama system and as vice provost and department chair in economics at Washington State University. Under his leadership, MSU changed its name to the University of Memphis to reflect its move toward becoming a leading urban research institution. The campus underwent a major facelift with the opening of the Ned R. McWherter Library and construction of a clock tower and student

plaza. Rawlins left the U of M to return to Washington State, this time as president. He served there until 2007, and now is president of the University of North Texas.

Did you know?• Rawlins presided over the dedication of the Ned R. McWherter Library, the largest facility on campus.

• Frosh Camp began during Rawlins’ tenure.

Dr. Shirley C. Raines(2001-present)

Dr. Shirley C. Raines became the first woman to hold the presidency of the University in 2001. Before her appointment, she had been vice chancellor for academic services and dean of the College of Education, Health and Human Sciences at the University of Kentucky. Raines also taught at George Mason University where she received the Distinguished Faculty Member award, and has received two awards from the Eastern Education Research Association. Widely regarded as an expert in teacher education and early childhood education, she is the author of 14 books and numerous journal articles. A graduate of the University of Tennessee at Martin, Raines received her master’s and doctorate in education from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.

Raines has become recognized for building productive partnerships both on and off campus. Her work has focused on such areas as student retention, expansion of the University’s Honors and Emerging Leaders programs, guaranteed internships for qualified students, and living-learning residential and curricular communities throughout the campus.

Did you know?

• The U of M reported its highest enrollment in fall 2011 with nearly 23,000 students.

• The Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law relocated to the historic former U.S. Post Office/Customs House downtown in 2010.



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Centennial :: That Perfect Season :: University of Memphis

http://web0.memphis.edu/centennial/season.htm[10/2/2015 2:54:04 PM]

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That Perfect Season Centennial StoryWhat's in a name1941 brought a new name to the school: Memphis State College. More >





Neither rain nor sleet nor snow — not even ankle-deep mud — would keep Douglas Mayo and his 1938 teammates from recording the only perfect season in University of Memphis football history.

With Memphis sporting a 9-0 record going into its final game of the season against Delta State in Cleveland, Miss., heavy rains flooded the field. The 1939 school yearbook referred to it as “one of the muddiest games ever played.” But the 93-year-old remembers the play that won the game like it was yesterday.

“There was a play we didn’t use much which was what we called 10-to-the-weak-side, which started out to the right,” says Mayo

(BS ’39). “The one that Skeeter Ellis ran 82 yards on, the play we won the game on, it started out exactly like that. The defense thought we would run another off-tackle play to the right, which was our standard play. But we didn’t — everybody completely reversed. We fooled them. That sprung Skeeter loose and he ran the last 50 yards with nobody around him.”

Touchdown, thanks largely to a downfield block by Mayo. Tigers 8, Delta State 0.

Memphis finished the year perfect and according to The Associated Press, as the highest scoring team in the nation. It was set to play San Jose State in a bowl game in California pitting the two highest scoring teams in the nation — both with perfect records — but SJS lost its final game and the bowl was canceled.

“We were ready to go. We had won 10 and we figured we could have won one more.”

Memphis needed the unblemished season. Mayo says because of lackluster years, “evil times” as he terms it, the administration was “thinking about telling us to quit.” But according to Mayo, the squad hired former Tennessee standout Allyn McKeen, a local lawyer, to coach the team. He ended up being a master recruiter.

“He brought in a lot of good players. You need a lot of good players because you are going to have some key people get hurt. Even if you have one or two star players, you

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Centennial :: That Perfect Season :: University of Memphis

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need a lot of depth. Our team, somebody could get hurt, but we had other great players to cover for them.”

McKeen left a couple of years later and coached Mississippi State to the SEC championship in 1941.

Games in 1938 were played at Crump Stadium and the Fairgrounds. The team practiced behind Scates Hall, which at the time was a men’s dorm. Mayo says the team was known as the Tigers, though the media referred to them as the “teachers” or “tutors.”

The game then was just as intense as it is now, but with some differences, he says.

“Everybody played on both sides of the ball then. The tailback did pretty much what the quarterback does today, he did nearly all the passing. The quarterback was more of a blocker.”

Other differences?

“Players have facemasks now. We didn’t have any facemasks. You could get your teeth knocked out. In fact, one of our teammates got his tooth knocked out in practice, so they stopped practice so the whole team could look for the tooth, but no one could find it. It was a violent game then like it is now.”

Mayo says of the perfect season, “At the beginning, the games weren’t taken too seriously by the opposition. We won the first four games before the rest of the opposition knew they had somebody to beat.”

Memphis scored 68 points against Cumberland State and the season included wins over Middle Tennessee and Troy.

The only sad note?

Because of the close-knit nature of the team, Mayo has kept a list of the whereabouts of each person on the squad: addresses and phone numbers. Each time one passes away, he puts a notation by the name.

Mayo’s list has lots of checkmarks.

“I may be the last living link to that perfect season,” as he reflects on the 40 or so on the team. Two members remain unaccounted for.

How did the team celebrate after the perfect-season-clinching win over Delta State?

“Some stories are best untold,” says Mayo, with a laugh.

— by Greg Russell



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Centennial :: Legend of the fall :: University of Memphis

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Legend of the fall Centennial StoryThe original Flying TigersDuring World War II, the U of M contributed to the war effort by training students to be pilots. More >





From their vantage point a block away at Methodist Hospital, emergency room personnel didn’t hear the hit. They didn’t watch Memphis State quarterback Russ Vollmer make that horrifying tumble down the concrete stairs at Crump Stadium. But the doctors and nurses would certainly know about it soon enough.

The year was 1963 and then-Memphis State University was in the middle of a fairy tale season. The Tigers had bolted to a 4-0-1 record, including a stunning 0-0 tie with No. 2 ranked Ole Miss that knocked the Rebels out of the polls. By year’s end, Memphis would rise as high as 14th in the country, sport a 9-0-1 record and receive a bid to the Sun Bowl (they held out for a Gator Bowl invite that never came).

But a single play during an Oct. 23 tussle with Mississippi State not only looked to doom the season, it did something greater: it gave birth to a legend.

Vollmer, a local star from Central High School, had used the early part of the contest to run all over the Bulldogs. He returned the opening kickoff 79 yards to give Memphis an early lead.

“I think that made them mad,” says Vollmer.

Russ Vollmer returns to Crump Stadium, Photo Courtesy of The Commercial Appeal

It didn’t help, either, that the Tigers had thrashed the Bulldogs 28-7 a year earlier in Starkville — Memphis’ first-ever SEC win. “Our students tried to tear down the goalposts after that win, but their fans beat the heck out of ’em with cowbells,” says Vollmer. “That set up an intense rivalry.”

So a year later, with Vollmer orchestrating what appeared to be a second straight upset, Mississippi State took exception — and things turned nasty.

“I was returning a punt down the sideline and they chased me out of bounds,” says Vollmer. “I had dropped the ball and was returning to the field when a guy hit me late. I really never saw him coming.

“I remember seeing the tops of heads as I flew over the Mississippi State bench. I hit the stairs to the dressing room.”

Memphis coach Billy “Spook” Murphy charged across the field, screaming into the faces of Mississippi State coaches. “You can’t do that to one of our players and get away with it,” the fiery coach said. “We are going to get you!”

The stadium went completely silent, then-student Larry Gardner says.

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Centennial :: Legend of the fall :: University of Memphis

http://web0.memphis.edu/centennial/legend.php[10/2/2015 2:54:15 PM]

“They carried him off the field to an awaiting ambulance,” he says. “We thought our only chance of winning had evaporated.”

Indeed, it did look bad as Vollmer was rushed to the emergency room at Methodist Hospital.

“I had no feeling in my back,” Vollmer says.

To make matters worse, the 11th-ranked Bulldogs scored twice to take a 10-9 lead going into the half. As the teams sprang back on the field for the third quarter, there was still no sign of Vollmer.

But the unexpected happened.

“All of a sudden Vollmer appeared at the top of those same stairs where he had been hit,” recalls Gardner. “Everyone in the stadium, especially the students, went wild as he trotted around the field to the Memphis State side. We went from the doldrums to euphoria.”

Says Vollmer, “Coach Murphy pulled me aside and said, ‘Do you hear that? Now go out there and kick their butts!’”

Vollmer and the Tiger team did just that: late in the game, the quarterback drove Memphis downfield 70 yards to set up a game-winning touchdown by Dave Casinelli.

Vollmer was named Associated Press National Back of the Week. And the Tigers would finish the season with perhaps their best year ever. — by Greg Russell



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Centennial :: These times they are a-changin' :: University of Memphis

http://web0.memphis.edu/centennial/times.htm[10/2/2015 2:54:18 PM]

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From the Memphis State Eight to Vietnam War-era demonstrations around the flagpole, U of M students have a history of making their voices be heard. They even helped keep the school from closing in the 1930s.

The first 100 years at the University of Memphis have been – with few exceptions – peaceful ones. Even the angry clashes and flag burnings that rocked many colleges during the Vietnam War largely skipped the Memphis campus. But life at a University mirrors the times that surround it, and even the usually tranquil U of M has seen its share of turbulent times.

The Great Depression created an international crisis, and less than 20 years into its existence West Tennessee State Teachers College found itself struggling for survival. In 1931, the state Board of Education cut the school year from 48 to 36 weeks, then cancelled the summer session and night classes. Faculty members stopped receiving their state salary after August, instead getting half pay raised through tuition and dormitory fees. In December President John W. Brister made the first of many lobbying trips to Nashville. At each turn, the state legislature allocated less funding than requested. Faculty continued on half pay until March 1932. There was fear that the school would lose its accreditation because of low faculty salaries. At the same time, enrollment reached a record high due to the shortage of jobs and the availability of cheap room and board on campus.

With the state out of money, the Tennessee General Assembly proposed closing all the state teacher colleges, saying there were too many teachers and not enough jobs. The plan touched off a passionate campaign on campus and in the community to keep WTSTC open, led by President Brister, the city’s two daily newspapers and local civic groups. Students organized action committees and held large meetings to generate public support for the school. A few selected students made speeches on local radio stations and from theatre and movie stages. Some 900 students planned to march on the state capital before Brister called for calm. The college remained open, but with a state appropriation so small it equaled the school’s funding in 1913.

In 1959, Memphis State underwent one of its most significant transitions: the first eight African-American students were admitted along side its 4,500 white students. It would be more than a decade before black students were assimilated fully into campus life. They were issued their books early so they wouldn’t have to stand in line with white students at the bookstore. The “Memphis State Eight” were not allowed in the cafeteria or student center, and were assigned separate restrooms. They could not set foot on campus before 8 a.m. and had to be gone by noon. Black students were exempt from physical education and ROTC classes that were mandatory for white students. A special section was designated for them at basketball games, and state troopers escorted them to classes.

At Memphis State, unlike some other colleges and universities undergoing integration, the eight students did not meet with violence. They were

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generally ignored, apart from a few hecklers waving Confederate flags. Student Ralph Prater recalls, “If I went to a table in the library where white students were already sitting, they would immediately get up and leave. It was certainly frustrating, and we all felt a sense of isolation during our stay at Memphis State.”

Five of the Memphis State Eight returned for their sophomore year; 25 additional black students joined them. Administrators urged the new group to integrate quietly and cautiously, advising them not to use the cafeteria. They were allowed to sit anywhere during on-campus basketball games, but relegated to separate sections for games at Ellis Auditorium or football games at Crump Stadium, which were both owned by the city.

MSU continued to bar black students from participating in many sports and extracurricular activities. That changed when Herb Hilliard (BBA ’71) became the first African-American to play basketball for the Tigers as a walk-on freshman in the 1965-66 season.

“I remember people yelling, ‘Get the ball to Leroy,’” Hilliard says. “I didn’t let it bother me.”

Hilliard later became a favorite of basketball boosters. When he hit two free throws after the buzzer to win a game against North Texas State, a huge “Herb for President” banner was hung across the University Center. Hilliard would rise to executive positions during his career with First Tennessee Bank.

With the escalation of the Vietnam War, protests swept many colleges and students burned draft cards, but not at MSU. This may have been due to the conservative values of many Memphis State students or the lack of active campus life at the commuter school. A group of students even organized a campaign to send holiday packages to soldiers serving with the 101st Airborne Division. Tensions between supporters of the war and those who opposed it sparked in 1966 when a publication called Logos surfaced on campus declaring, “As American citizens, we should be ashamed of what our government is doing in Vietnam.”

Over the new few weeks, additional issues of the underground newspaper appeared on campus, prompting shoving matches between the distributors and students who were against its editorial stand. The student newspaper, The Tiger Rag, responded with an editorial on the dangers of radical movements on campus.

Not until 1970 did a clash related to the war shake the MSU campus. On May 5, a small band of students gathered on the Alumni Mall to speak out about four Kent State University students who were killed by members of the Ohio National Guard during an anti-war demonstration the previous day. The final speaker called for the flag in front of the Administration Building to be lowered to half-staff in memory of the slain students. As the flag was lowered, other students voiced their opposition, and agitated members of the anti-war group chanted, clenched their fists and raised their arms. While the protesters then moved to Jones Hall, where Air Force ROTC classes were taught, opposing students returned the flag to the top of the pole. When the protesters returned, they attempted to lower the flag again. There were chants of “down, down, down” and “up, up, up” as fistfights broke out. President Cecil C. Humphreys tried to calm the crowd. After representatives from both sides met in Humphreys’ office, a compromise was reached: the flag remained up that day, but was lowered the next day at noon for a memorial service to honor the Kent State



four.

The assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968 forever changed the civil rights movement. Although MSU had been integrated for a decade, many African-American students continued to feel marginalized. While they attended classes, being a black student meant only partial participation in campus life. There were few black athletes, no fraternities for blacks, and no African-Americans on the Homecoming court.

The Black Student Association was determined to bring change to the University. On April 23, 1969, 75 students staged a sit-in at the office of President Humphreys to protest his refusal to provide $1,750 to the BSA to bring controversial lawmaker Adam Clayton Powell to campus as a speaker. The students met with Humphreys, but refused to leave until police were called. They eventually left peacefully, but on April 28, 109 students massed and again occupied the office of Humphreys, who was not there. The police were called again, but this time the protesters stood their ground and refused to leave. No violence erupted, but the 109 were arrested and charged with trespassing.

As a result of the stand taken by the 109, along with growing social and political pressures, more black students enrolled and additional black faculty members were hired. African-Americans started to gain a full measure of campus life.

The spring of 1970 also brought to campus the controversial Broadway musical Hair. The show, featuring an interracial cast, followed a group of hippies trying to avoid the Vietnam War draft. The show was groundbreaking for its profanity, nudity and drug use. Theatre director Keith Kennedy promised to cut the brief nude scene near the end of the first act. Still, the show ruffled some with conservative tastes. One Memphian called the play “an outrageous assault on morality, an outrageous assault on patriotism, and an outrageous assault on America’s youth.” Still, not

everyone agreed. Hair sold out every performance. It proved so popular that six more shows were added to the play’s run.

The women’s liberation movement born in the 1960s generated little action on campus, except over specific issues. When incoming freshmen received a new health form in 1977, women objected to a series of 19 questions directed at females only, which inquired about sexual activity and birth control. Female students argued the questions were discriminatory and invaded their privacy since men were not asked to answer them. By the next year, the University had dropped the offending questions from the health form.

Protests were a part of student life for Baby Boomers of the early 1970s. But as times changed, so did the students.

Have Memphis students always been too busy with studies, work and other responsibilities to shake things up? Is it because many come from families with traditional Southern values? It’s hard to pinpoint a reason.

Dr. James Chumney, a U of M professor of history and observer of campus life for more than 40 years, points to the social makeup of many students. “Many came from solid, conservative families,” Chumney says. “So many were business-like. They saw this as a chance for a better life for themselves, and they didn’t want to blow it.”

More recently, the campus has welcomed Generation X’ers, then students of the millennium. At least a few have shown they can still growl when provoked. Last March, seven people, including two U of M students, were arrested at the state Capitol in Nashville. The protesters disrupted a Senate committee hearing and were removed from the committee room. They had been rallying against a bill that would have revoked the collective bargaining rights of the state’s teachers union. Two days later, a state legislator rose on the floor of the Senate and called for the University to take action against the protesters.

Two other senators publicly defended the students, one recalling young protesters during 1960s civil rights demonstrations.

- by Gabrielle Maxey



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Centennial :: What's in a Name :: University of Memphis

http://web0.memphis.edu/centennial/bygone.htm[10/2/2015 2:54:21 PM]

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Students and faculty gathered on the front steps of the Administration Building to celebrate the new name. Other notable events in the 1940s: After former President John Willard Brister died in his sleep at the end of the “Depression Decade,” Richard C. Jones became and served as president until 1943. Movie star Dick Powell visited the campus in the early ’40s and chose six “Vanity Fair Queens.” But after the invasion of Pearl Harbor, campus life quickly changed. Students exchanged textbooks for rifles and left the college for Bataan and Corregidor.

Students who stayed on campus built an industrial arts building as members of the National Youth Administration. They also volunteered at Kennedy Hospital. In 1943, Dr. Jennings B. Sanders became president of the college. At age 43, he was the youngest person to occupy the president’s chair, and the first to hold a PhD. Prior to Sanders’ presidency, the college had lost its academic standing with the Southern Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools. His top goal was to have the school reinstated and it took him just three months to do so.

During the war, Memphis State became a pilot training center; pilots were housed on the third floor of Mynders Hall. In 1944, of 17 seniors, only two were males, with less than 20 male students attending on all levels. Jack Millard Smith became president in 1946 and would lead the school until 1960. In 1947, student Barbara Walker was selected Miss America, the last to be crowned in a swimsuit.



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Centennial :: The Original Flying Tigers :: University of Memphis

http://web0.memphis.edu/centennial/tigers.htm[10/2/2015 2:54:24 PM]

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The Original Flying Tigers Centennial StoryA purr-fect lifeFrom the "blue and gray warriors" to TOM the Bengal tiger, the U of M mascot has seen many changes over the century. More >





While many people on campus are aware that the U of M’s Air Force ROTC program is nicknamed “the Flying Tigers,” very few people know that the University’s first pilot training program actually took place during World War II under the auspices of the Civil Aeronautics Authority (CAA). The Civilian Pilot Training Program or CPTP operated at what was then-West Tennessee State Teacher’s College (WTSTC) from 1939 through 1944.

When the CPTP came into existence, the College was in the process of recovering from the Depression. While enrollment did not drop during t

Centennial :: U of M Centennial News :: University of Memphis · The college fad of “streaking” hits campus. 1975— Innovative University College established at MSU. Enrollment

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